Stuff
Ellen Wittlinger: A Self Portrait
Ellen Wittlinger Revealed
Revealing Questions
- Q. How would you describe your life in only 8 words?
- A. satisfying, peaceful, nostalgic, nourished, rooted, funky, funny, well-photographed!
- Q. What is your motto or maxim?
- A. Live and let live.
- Q. How would you describe perfect happiness?
- A. I'm not sure there is such a thing. Striving for perfection leaves you frustrated most of the time. Happiness is doing the best job you can and knowing that it has been well-received by others.
- Q. What’s your greatest fear?
- A. High places, dark roads
- Q. If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you choose to be?
- A. Venice, Italy or Oaxaca, Mexico
- Q. Which living person do you most admire?
- A. Nelson Mandela
- Q. What are your most overused words or phrases?
- A. I'm tired.
- Q. What do you regret most?
- A. Not moving to western Massachusetts sooner
- Q. If you could acquire any talent, what would it be?
- A. Painting or ballroom dancing
- Q. What’s your greatest flaw?
- A. Impatience
- Q. What’s your best quality?
- A. Loyalty to my friends.
- Q. If you could be any person or thing, who or what would it be?
- A. A well-loved dog.
- Q. What trait is most noticeable about you?
- A. My loud laugh.
- Q. Who is your favorite fictional hero?
- A. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- Q. Who is your favorite fictional villain?
- A. Spike
- Q. What is your biggest pet peeve?
- A. Waiting for people who are late.
- Q. What is your favorite occupation, when you’re not writing?
- A. Reading, taking photographs, walking the dog
- Q. What’s your fantasy profession?
- A. Ballroom dancer
- Q. What 3 personal qualities are most important to you?
- A. Honesty, loyalty, kindness
- Q. If you could eat only one thing for the rest of your days, what would it be?
- A. pizza
- Q. What are your 5 favorite songs?
- A. Hard Love (Bob Franke), When I Was a Boy (Dar Williams), Arrow (Cheryl Wheeler), Galileo (Indigo Girls), The Poet Game (Greg Brown)
On Books and Writing
- Q. Who are your favorite authors?
- A. Brock Cole J.D. Salinger Gabriel Garcia-Marquez Grace Paley Jane Smiley M.T. Anderson Marilynne Robinson Nick Hornby Gregory Maguire Ann Patchett Virginia Euwer Wolff and many more...
- Q. What are your 5 favorite books of all time?
- A. Celine by Brock Cole Feed by M.T. Anderson Little Disturbances of Man by Grace Paley One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia-Marquez Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger
- Q. Is there a book you love to reread?
- A. All of the above favorites!
- Q. Do you have one sentence of advice for new writers?
- A. Read everything you can; write every day, don't lose hope.
- Q. What comment do you hear most often from your readers?
- A. The comment most often made is that they want to sequel to whatever book they like most.
- Q. How did you come to write Parrotfish?
- A. I wrote Parrotfish after meeting my daughter's good friend, Toby, who was transgendered. It seemed to me this was a subject most teens had probably never thought about, but one that would be of interest to them. It was interesting to me too! I asked Toby to help me understand the emotions he'd dealt with in the process of coming out as trans--he was an enormous help to me in writing the book.
